Jazz Edge Suns in Preseason Finale as Scoring Explodes Past Projections

The Jazz took down the Suns 119-116 in a preseason finale that turned into an unexpected shootout, blowing past the 225.5 total and leaving DarkHorse's under call in the dust. So much for evaluation-focused, low-intensity basketball.

The 235-point combined score made a mockery of the deep-rotation theory. Yes, both teams likely cycled through their benches as expected in a meaningless exhibition closer, but someone forgot to tell these rosters they were supposed to sleepwalk through possessions. Instead of the plodding, defense-optional slog we anticipated, both sides found enough offensive rhythm to torch the number by nearly 10 points.

The Suns' load management strategy apparently didn't extend to offensive execution, and whatever defensive personnel advantages the Jazz supposedly had with Jackson Jr. never materialized into the pace-killing grind we projected. Preseason finales are supposed to be the deadest of dead zones for scoring, but this one had juice from start to finish.

Credit where it's due: Utah found a way to steal three points in a game that didn't matter, but the real story is how badly we whiffed on the total. When the final preseason game outscores expectations by this margin, you tip your cap and move on to games that count.